News Releases

April 29, 2004

WOCCU Educates Caribbean Regulators On CU Difference

Madison, WI-Thirty-five regulators from 18
different countries participated last week in
Barbados in a seminar on CU supervision organized
by World Council of Credit Unions, Inc. (WOCCU)
at the request of Caribbean Regional Technical
Assistance Center (CARTEC). CARTEC is sponsored
by International Monetary Fund, U.S. Agency for
International Development, CIDA, Canada, DFID,
the United Kingdom, International Development
Bank and the World Bank among others.

World Council invited the National Association
of
State Credit Union Supervisors (NASCUS) to assist
in presenting best practices in supervision of
credit unions in the United States. The NASCUS
presenters included: Barbara Pogue, director of
membership & accreditation, NASCUS; Ella
Robinson, retired commissioner from Kentucky; and
Roger Little, deputy commissioner from Michigan
who shared experiences in the NASCUS
Certification Program, financial management,
credit risk management and sound lending policies
with their colleagues from the Caribbean.

The World Council team of presenters,
consisted
of Arthur Arnold, president & CEO; Brian Branch,
vice president and COO; Mark Cifuentes, senior
manager-development; and Jesus Chavez, technical
development manager spoke on delegated
supervision, quirks in the laws: what works and
what does not, effective supervision, good
governance and World Council's PEARLS Monitoring
System for regulators in the Caribbean.

Caribbean credit union representatives
included:
Glen Francis, general manager of the Jamaica
Cooperative Credit Union League and Martin
Guevara, CEO of WOCCU's member organization, the
Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions also
gave presentations on practical approaches to
credit union supervision, accounting systems and
audit practices.

During the seminar, Glen Francis was able to
demonstrate that good supervision supported by
WOCCU's PEARLS standards and monitoring system,
generates sustainable development results. When
World Council started the strengthening project
in 1997, the collective institutional capital of
all credit unions in Jamaica amounted to a
negative 1% of total assets. At the completion of
the project in 2000 the institutional capital
rate was a positive 4%. Today, it is a positive 8
%. "I have nothing to add. The statistics say it
all! Credit unions can become an integral part of
a sound and safe financial system in the
Caribbean," explained Arnold.

"This is an unique opportunity to educate
regulators and supervisors in the Caribbean about
the credit union difference. The high level of
participation and lively discussions demonstrate
that all participants will leave this seminar
with a much better understanding what credit
unions are all about and how to supervise them
more effectively," noted Arthur Arnold, WOCCU
president & CEO.

World Council of Credit Unions is the global trade association and development agency for credit unions. World Council promotes the sustainable development of credit unions and other financial cooperatives around the world to empower people through access to high quality and affordable financial services. World Council advocates on behalf of the global credit union system before international organizations and works with national governments to improve legislation and regulation. Its technical assistance programs introduce new tools and technologies to strengthen credit unions' financial performance and increase their outreach.

World Council has implemented more than 290 technical assistance programs in 71 countries. Worldwide, 57,000 credit unions in 103 countries serve 208 million people. Learn more about World Council's impact around the world at www.woccu.org.